"Not want, but need":
farmer-led irrigation in Ghana

Every year, the dry season brings agricultural work in northern Ghana to a grinding halt. People are unable to farm without rainfall, so its absence for a long period of time severely limits their livelihoods.

Wider access to irrigation could reverse that. As a dependable alternative to scarce or variable rainfall, irrigation enables farmers not only to grow crops during the dry season but also to grow more of them all year round. A boost in agricultural productivity generates positive ripple effects through all segments of society, from increasing food security to creating jobs and helping people afford health care and school fees. Sub-Saharan Africa, where 70% of the population is smallholder farmers, is poised to profit from irrigation.

Despite its benefits, however, the success of public irrigation schemes is hindered by many challenges, such as weak institutions, poor site selection, inadequate maintenance and reservoir siltation. Many farmers must invest their own resources to acquire irrigation technologies, which pose financial and technical barriers. The poorest and most marginalized groups are most likely to miss out. As a result, farmer-led irrigation—like public irrigation—runs the risk of advantaging some populations while further marginalizing others.

Two young men from the Upper East region of Ghana share their experiences during the dry season. Through photos of daily life, they illustrate how access to irrigation (or the lack thereof) impacts them, along with its potential to change the lives of many others.

Paskinny and Fifty—neither of whom have access to public irrigation schemes—are both participants in the International Water Management Institute’s project about Bhungroo Irrigation Technology. Farmers in Gorogo and Sepat suffer from not only lack of water during the dry season, but also extensive flooding during the rainy season. With better water management, they could increase their agricultural productivity and climate resilience throughout the year. Bhungroo Irrigation Technology stores excess floodwater underground during the rainy season so it is available for use during the dry season. Once the Bhungroo system has stored water, Paskinny accesses it to irrigate his garden using a solar pump. Solar pumps are promising irrigation technologies for off-grid communities like Gorogo and Sepat because they do not require fuel costs or electricity.

With access to irrigation, Paskinny is able to grow and sell vegetables for a profit, which he uses to purchase food and school supplies for his younger siblings. He hopes to someday expand the irrigated garden in his village, so others can do the same. Without access to irrigation technology, Fifty is unable to farm or generate a consistent income during the dry season, leaving him with limited options if his children fall ill or require financial support.

When it comes to irrigation, "I'm not talking about want," says Luu Yin, the chief of Gorogo. "I'm talking about need."

Access to irrigation offers widespread, unequivocal benefits. Millions of smallholder farmers around the world would be better equipped to support their families, which in turn reduces rural poverty and combats chronic hunger within a growing population — instead of struggling to make ends meet until the dry season ends. In Ghana, up to 210,000 hectares are economically and biophysically suitable for irrigation, which could support 690,000 smallholder farmers. The continent of Africa could double its crop yields and gain as much as USD 22 billion per year for 185 million people.

Nevertheless, many farmers are prevented from reaping the benefits of irrigation due to limited resources and lack of technical know-how. Without financial means, a farmer cannot purchase irrigation technology; without a reliable supply chain, they may have trouble finding fuel for their pump; and without the technical expertise to make repairs, a broken pipeline becomes useless. While the farmer-led irrigation revolution has begun, new business models and training opportunities are necessary for ensuring it will come to fruition. For example, a microfinance organization could partner with organizations that specialize in irrigated agriculture to co-develop an economically viable credit product.

The barriers to accessing irrigation disproportionately affect marginalized groups, such as women, youth and people who are uneducated or resource-poor. Because those who most need the benefits of irrigation are those for whom it is most out of reach, irrigation programs must make special efforts to include them to ensure that the farmer-led irrigation revolution leaves no one behind.

IWMI’s research on Bhungroo Irrigation Technology in the Upper East region of Ghana was conducted in collaboration with the Conservation Alliance, with generous funding from the United States Agency for International Development. It forms part of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE), which receives support from the donors of the CGIAR Fund. Thank you to the residents of Gorogo and Sepat — especially Paskinny, Fifty, Gifty, Starboy and Luu Yin — for sharing their experiences. Thanks also to Richmond Richie for his insight and translations.